1950's Video

http://oldfortyfives.com/TakeMeBackToTheFifties.htm

Operation Overlord 1944

I  THOUGHT I WOULD POST THIS IN CASE  I MISS-PLACE IT

 

 

     An elderly gentleman of 83 arrived in Paris by plane. At the
 French customs desk, the man took a few minutes to locate his passport in
 his  carry-on bag.
            "You have been to France before, monsieur?" the customs officer
 asked,  sarcastically.
            The elderly gentleman admitted he had been to France previously.
           "Then you should know enough to have your passport ready."
            The Canadian said, "The last time I was here, I didn't have to
 show  it."
            "Impossible. Everyone  has to show their passports on
 arrival  in  France!"
            The Canadian senior gave the Frenchman a long hard look. Then he
 quietly explained. "Well, when I came ashore at Normandy Beach on D-Day in
 1944 to help liberate this country, I couldn't find any Frenchmen to  show
 it to."

the bell 'Tolls' for thee

Remember back in the 50's & 60's the Champlain Bridge still had tolls on it, & could be payed by using a quarter or the old Bridge Tokens,....even the Victoria Bridge had a toll booth as did Jacques Cartier ,althought the latter two had dropped their tolls & the Champlain Bridge continued charging for quite sometime into the 70's I believe. Apprently there is talk of renewing the tolls again,  not sur when or if this is going to really take place,but soon you may be seeing te familiar old toll booths back on the bridges,here's te old toll booth building on the Champlain Bridge ,which was usually the starting line for those old Red Chevy Biscayne Champlain Bridge Police Vehicles,which Btw: had 427 cid V8's in them which could catch the fastest of cars in their day, I know cause we tried to run the toll( just for fun ) in a fast car or so we thought,.and the old plain-jane red 4 door ,non-descript,Chevy pulled alongside,with ease ......a ticke t was issued ,..lol & that was that.......

   Typical though the cop had a sense of humour & laughed ,becuase noone thought these things could travel like that,   he caught us before we got to the end of the bridge on the southshore side....

                        ps: I have not been keeping up to date with this blog lately,but I will pop in occasionally.................................................................................hf&rv

Hockey Night In Canada

http://www.nfb.ca/film/heres_hockey/

Savoy Theatre

Here is an architects drawing of the Savoy Theatre that was published in the Guardian on the 15th of October 1937. The construction following shortly after. The Fifth Avenue theatre was also constructed in 1937. I have added the photo of the finished Savoy theatre so as to compare with the drawing.  

Guy

WHERE TO FIND THE BEST MONTREAL FOOD!

I'm starting to consider joining Richard when he goes to Montreal in September and if I do I would like some help on where VC members think the best smoked meat, bbq chicken, chinese food etc., is served these days.  We usually go to the same places every time we visit, but next time, whether September or a couple of years,  I feel like a change and I now have all of you out there to help me  enjoy some of your favourite restaurants.  We'd also like to find a restaurant that serves great french cuisine...none of this nouvelle cuisine junk etc., great french country cooking.  Our special place for anniversaries etc used to be Au Vieux St Gabriel in old Montreal, but if it's still there, I think they cater to the tourist trade these days.  Does anyone know of any restaurant that serves great old fashioned desserts like Coconut Cream Pie and Tarte au Sucre?  Now you see why I needed TOPS!  Tempt me with your favourites and I'll keep a tally and see which restaurants win out...Thanking you all in advance...Diane...P.S.  Do any of Verdun's great pastry shops still operate, like Smith-Mains or Leiths etc? 

 

MOVING DAY!

Is May 1st still the big moving day in Quebec?  Remember when the trucks were scattered along the narrow Verdun streets (because of parked cars) and people moved their furniture etc,, sometimes doing balancing acts from the third and second floors.  They used to have extra tradesmen like Bell Telephone installers come in from Ontario to help out and the day was major chaos from morning to night.  Does anyone know how such a crazy rule started with all rental contracts ending on May 1st?  I used to watch the activity from our third floor balcony and see who was moving out and if any new kids were moving in.  Always lots of kids to play with on the streets of Verdun....Diane  

Revisit 'the Main' different film

I did place this link under the original video of 'The Main' posted a few months ago,but I thought I would paste this link here,so everyone can see ,it's a different view & story of the Mian ,but there is good narration & it has some good old footage of Montreal ,this was filmed by the NFB in 1973  ( I came across it while watching the Victoria Bridge video).........hope it's of interest        http://www.nfb.ca/film/Our_Street_Was_Paved_with_Gold/

Transportation in the 19th Century

This is the way our ancesters travelled in the 19th century

. Guy

 

Juke Box

Just click on a year and listen to your favorite songs.
M
1940’s JuKeBoX
1955 JuKeBoX
1956 JuKeBoX
1957 JuKeBoX
1958 JuKeBoX
1959 JuKeBoX
1960 JuKeBoX
1961 JuKeBoX
1962 JuKeBoX
1963 JuKeBoX
1964 JuKeBoX
1965 JuKeBoX
1966 JuKeBoX
1967 JuKeBoX
1968 JuKeBoX
1969 JuKeBoX
1970 JuKeBoX
1971 JuKeBoX
1972 JuKeBoX
1973 JuKeBoX
1974 JuKeBoX
1975 JuKeBoX
1976 JuKeBoX
1977 JuKeBoX
1978 JuKeBoX
1979 JuKeBoX

 

Talk of Renewal

Cadillac Fairview is planning to develop "an intermodal and multipurpose urban development hub" around the Bell Centre and Windsor Station, sources have confirmed to The Gazette. La Presse reported yesterday that the commercial real-estate arm of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan and a numbered company co-owned by one of its representatives, Salvatore Iacono, have purchased a series of lots around the concert and sports venue, some of the properties in a state of disrepair Iacono of Davin Capital Corp. and Cadillac Fairview spokespersons and executives did not return calls seeking comment on the plan. Michel Spénard of Canadian Pacific, which put Windsor Station up for sale two years ago, also did not return calls Heritage Montreal spokesman Dinu Bumbaru said that "there had been rumours for quite a while about something like this." "But I don't know why we have to hear about it (piecemeal) like this," he added. "The city of Montreal should be more dynamic and involved." He speculated that the tramway project along Peel St. might have been an incentive for the Cadillac Fairview plan But the sticking point, he said, was "Windsor Station, the gateway of the whole project." As a protected heritage site, the underground vaults would have to be preserved, "which might present restrictions on renovations." Detailed plans for the elaborate, multi-level development project show that it would include shops, entertainment venues, residential areas, office space, a hotel, parking and a new train terminal, presumably at Windsor Station for the Dorion-Rigaud commuter line The only lot that has yet to be purchased to assemble all the land needed to complete the project is Parking Jack, a parking lot owned by Jack Ben-Sabat His daughter Rachel confirmed that her father was holding out for a better offer, but she did not expandBen-Sabat later said that he "wasn't interested" in speaking about the matter: The City of Montreal should not be facilitating any projects involving the Ontario Teacher Pension Plan. This group is known for reneging on their agreements and commitments. How quickly we forget their plans and legal commitments last year to buy BCE only to back down and reneging on their promised $2 billion break-up fee. The OTPP is untrustworthy and Montreal should seek out more reliable developers to bring this project to fruition.     Putting the Bell Centre where it is and removing trains from Windsor Station was not only terrible urban planning, but an insult. It destroyed the area around the old forum and and really ruinded the area around Windsor Station. Moving the trains to Lucien l'Allier station was a waste of money. Now we have another grand sceam to improve the area. Sounds like the cure is worse than the disease. Now we have a secret solution? Something is wrong.     The solution is to remove the Bell Centre ,and put the arena somewhere else, where it truely belongs, and restore the station and the area around it to it's former glory. With the Canadians up for sale this could be a golden opportunity. Is this the best that the city can do for one of the worlds great train stations? The whole world is watching.   This makes sense for all sorts of reasons. To function, retail either needs to offer big retailers cheap rent, however, in this case a train station is a determined destination and people are forced to walk through the centre. With this in mind, Cadillac will develop montreal's newest most impressive urban regional mall within a heritage complex and benefit from the residential growth in griffintown, the expansion of Concordia, and the long-term office development in the surrounding node. Montrealers should support this project as we need to develop a penn station to complement our Grand Central. I am confident that these experts will pull it off, and for those that think that we do not need more retail, and that ste-catherine will suffer, wake up and smell the coffee, we should not and do not need to protect anyone from a little healthy competition.

Renew the old Windsor Station

Cadillac Fairview is planning to develop "an intermodal and multipurpose urban development hub" around the Bell Centre and Windsor Station, sources have confirmed to The Gazette La Presse reported yesterday that the commercial real-estate arm of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan and a numbered company co-owned by one of its representatives, Salvatore Iacono, have purchased a series of lots around the concert and sports venue, some of the properties in a state of disrepair. Iacono of Davin Capital Corp. and Cadillac Fairview spokespersons and executives did not return calls seeking comment on the plan. Michel Spénard of Canadian Pacific, which put Windsor Station up for sale two years ago, also did not return calls. Heritage Montreal spokesman Dinu Bumbaru said that "there had been rumours for quite a while about something like this." "But I don't know why we have to hear about it (piecemeal) like this," he added. "The city of Montreal should be more dynamic and involved." He speculated that the tramway project along Peel St. might have been an incentive for the Cadillac Fairview plan. But the sticking point, he said, was "Windsor Station, the gateway of the whole project." As a protected heritage site, the underground vaults would have to be preserved, "which might present restrictions on renovations." Detailed plans for the elaborate, multi-level development project show that it would include shops, entertainment venues, residential areas, office space, a hotel, parking and a new train terminal, presumably at Windsor Station for the Dorion-Rigaud commuter line. The only lot that has yet to be purchased to assemble all the land needed to complete the project is Parking Jack, a parking lot owned by Jack Ben-Sabat. His daughter Rachel confirmed that her father was holding out for a better offer, but she did not expand Ben-Sabat later said that he "wasn't interested" in speaking about the mattThe City of Montreal should not be facilitating any projects involving the Ontario Teacher Pension Plan. This group is known for reneging on their agreements and commitments. How quickly we forget their plans and legal commitments last year to buy BCE only to back down and reneging on their promised $2 billion break-up fee. The OTPP is untrustworthy and Montreal should seek out more reliable developers to bring this project to fruition. the Bell Centre where it is and removing trains from Windsor Station was not only terrible urban planning, but an insult. It destroyed the area around the old forum and and really ruinded the area around Windsor Station. Moving the trains to Lucien l'Allier station was a waste of money. Now we have another grand sceam to improve the area. Sounds like the cure is worse than the disease. Now we have a secret solution? Something is wrong. The solution is to remove the Bell Centre ,and put the arena somewhere else, where it truely belongs, and restore the station and the area around it to it's former glory. With the Canadians up for sale this could be a golden opportunity. Is this the best that the city can do for one of the worlds great train stations? The whole world is watching. This makes sense for all sorts of reasons. To function, retail either needs to offer big retailers cheap rent, however, in this case a train station is a determined destination and people are forced to walk through the centre. With this in mind, Cadillac will develop montreal's newest most impressive urban regional mall within a heritage complex and benefit from the residential growth in griffintown, the expansion of Concordia, and the long-term office development in the surrounding node. Montrealers should support this project as we need to develop a penn station to complement our Grand Central. I am confident that these experts will pull it off, and for those that think that we do not need more retail, and that ste-catherine will suffer, wake up and smell the coffee, we should not and do not need to protect anyone from a little healthy competition.

Renew the old Windsor Station

Cadillac Fairview is planning to develop "an intermodal and multipurpose urban development hub" around the Bell Centre and Windsor Station, sources have confirmed to The Gazette La Presse reported yesterday that the commercial real-estate arm of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan and a numbered company co-owned by one of its representatives, Salvatore Iacono, have purchased a series of lots around the concert and sports venue, some of the properties in a state of disrepair. Iacono of Davin Capital Corp. and Cadillac Fairview spokespersons and executives did not return calls seeking comment on the plan. Michel Spénard of Canadian Pacific, which put Windsor Station up for sale two years ago, also did not return calls. Heritage Montreal spokesman Dinu Bumbaru said that "there had been rumours for quite a while about something like this." "But I don't know why we have to hear about it (piecemeal) like this," he added. "The city of Montreal should be more dynamic and involved." He speculated that the tramway project along Peel St. might have been an incentive for the Cadillac Fairview plan. But the sticking point, he said, was "Windsor Station, the gateway of the whole project." As a protected heritage site, the underground vaults would have to be preserved, "which might present restrictions on renovations." Detailed plans for the elaborate, multi-level development project show that it would include shops, entertainment venues, residential areas, office space, a hotel, parking and a new train terminal, presumably at Windsor Station for the Dorion-Rigaud commuter line. The only lot that has yet to be purchased to assemble all the land needed to complete the project is Parking Jack, a parking lot owned by Jack Ben-Sabat. His daughter Rachel confirmed that her father was holding out for a better offer, but she did not expand Ben-Sabat later said that he "wasn't interested" in speaking about the mattThe City of Montreal should not be facilitating any projects involving the Ontario Teacher Pension Plan. This group is known for reneging on their agreements and commitments. How quickly we forget their plans and legal commitments last year to buy BCE only to back down and reneging on their promised $2 billion break-up fee. The OTPP is untrustworthy and Montreal should seek out more reliable developers to bring this project to fruition. the Bell Centre where it is and removing trains from Windsor Station was not only terrible urban planning, but an insult. It destroyed the area around the old forum and and really ruinded the area around Windsor Station. Moving the trains to Lucien l'Allier station was a waste of money. Now we have another grand sceam to improve the area. Sounds like the cure is worse than the disease. Now we have a secret solution? Something is wrong. The solution is to remove the Bell Centre ,and put the arena somewhere else, where it truely belongs, and restore the station and the area around it to it's former glory. With the Canadians up for sale this could be a golden opportunity. Is this the best that the city can do for one of the worlds great train stations? The whole world is watching. This makes sense for all sorts of reasons. To function, retail either needs to offer big retailers cheap rent, however, in this case a train station is a determined destination and people are forced to walk through the centre. With this in mind, Cadillac will develop montreal's newest most impressive urban regional mall within a heritage complex and benefit from the residential growth in griffintown, the expansion of Concordia, and the long-term office development in the surrounding node. Montrealers should support this project as we need to develop a penn station to complement our Grand Central. I am confident that these experts will pull it off, and for those that think that we do not need more retail, and that ste-catherine will suffer, wake up and smell the coffee, we should not and do not need to protect anyone from a little healthy competition.

God bless her heart.

This is a clearer one. Almost 23,000,000 hits so far.
Bill


www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY

More Montreal History 'slipping away' ??

Found this article on the montreal weblog page, it shows the present condition of the old Montreal Forum.......(the city we knew is changing)

Walking around yesterday afternoon I was struck again by the decrepitude and ugliness of much of Ste-Catherine between Atwater and Guy, but that isn't news to Montrealers.

What gets mentioned less often is the incredible eyesore created by the building that anchors the whole mess.

Sacrilege first: the original Montreal Forum was not a thing of beauty, but it had a certain solid presence and, of course, the cumulative history of the matches and performances that took place there.

This 1950s photo (originally from the city archives) shows what's under that present-day mess. Even so, the office-block-like addition along Atwater is already overbalancing the building in a weird way (it wasn't part of the original design, shown at top).

The major 1968 renovation enlarged the building and created a glass and concrete façade that was unlikely to lift the heart of the architectural critic, but was functional and didn't detract from its surroundings.

But now! Feast your eyes on this big box of mismatched siding, signs tacked up ad-hoc on ugly scaffolding (lots more of that along the Atwater side), dead exit doors on Ste-Catherine Street, a patchwork of junk basically saying nobody gives a damn. Cabot Square across the street could be quite a pleasant spot, but it has this right in its face. Children who look out at it from the hospital opposite are set back in their recovery from illness. This area will likely never be rescued and made right again until this eyesore is taken away and something less hideous replaces it.

A city like ours should not tolerate a blight like this on a major corner of a major street and, what's more, making mock of what once was a fabled venue. But people get used to things and feel they simply have to put up with urban ugliness because it's there and it's not going away. Until it does! Please, somebody, take it down and put it out of its misery. Like the Seville Theatre a block away, there's nothing there worth keeping any more.

Anyone attend TOPS in Verdun 35 Years Ago?

When I joined, Kathy McFarlane was President and Shirley Poutney Vice President.  We received charms for our charm bracelets when we lost 5 or 10 lbs.  When we gained weight we had to sit in the "Pigpen" for the whole meeting!  I still have my charm bracelet and photos of my "Graduation" held at the Windsor Hotel (I think).  My Goal Weight got lost somewhere along the way and was never to be seen again!...Diane

VHS 1965 Yearbook

 

Susan McDonald,

Here are the photos from the 1965 VHS yearbook I promissed

Guy

 

 

Old address

Have you tried  http://bibnum2.bnquebec.ca/bna/lovell/src/1924-1925/4.Montreal_street_directory/V/110643_1924-1925_0471.pdf

 

There was a 1924 section in the Street Guide, Looked up  678 Verdun....There were three digit addresses on Verdun Avenue way back when....But that is as far as I could go. Perhaps someone else can jump in and help. 

Looking for an old address

I am tracing my Grandparents 6 different homes in Verdun.  I have photos of all of them.  I just can't seem to find one address, 678 Verdun Ave.. 

Did the street numbering ever change?  It is from 1924.

 

Any help appreciated.

Re: Pamela Powney

Does anyone know if the Pam Powney, mentioned in the memorial section, ever attended Lorne School in the Point?
-Ken

Land Owned by the Late Sir Joseph Hickson for Sale

PLAN OF

KING'S PARK PROPERTY

BELONGING TO

ESTATE LATE SIR JOSEPH HICKSON

FOR SALE BY

U.H. DANDURAND

I have discovered an old plan wich dates back to the late 1800s which is in the Centre d'Archives Montreal on Viger street. This is an original map wich may not have been viewed for decades judging by the bad condition it is in and I had a copy made for our society (SHGV) and wich I am sharing with you today. This is an exclusive and you are fortunate to be able to view this plan as it dates back to the beginning of Verdun's developement.

 Notice the terms of payment:

NEW  TERMS: $25.00 Cash on each lot and balance payable at the rate of from $5.50 per month WITHOUT INTEREST. Price Exceedingly low.

Guy

Please note: This map and many others are at our society for members, Verdunites and any others to view.

What Time Will Tell

Check out this Cool Site..........See what has changed

http://www.mccord-museum.qc.ca/scripts/games_jeux.php?Lang=1&duo=18&id=3

Ferry St Louis

                                                     Here is an excellant photo of a typical ferry that operated between Verdun and Laprairie wich I found in an old Guardian at the SHGV. It is at the second ave wharf (Quaie Leblanc) and you can also see the tracks of the Lower Lachine Road (LaSalle) streetcar nearby. I have added the photo to my Album no. 28. I have added a photo of the Leblanc Wharf wich gives us a view from the opposite direction. These ferries stopped operating in the late 30s.

Guy

Le Pavillon, Foundation of Verdun 1876

Here is another photo of the Le Pavillon wich was situated near the corner of Church and LaSalle Blvd and wich was demolished in 1954 as reported in the Guardian of the 30th of September 1954..

It is in this building that the City of Verdun was founded in 1876 and the Knights of Columbus were the last residents.

As I have mentioned before, it is a  real tragedy that this historical building was permitted to be demolished to be replaced by a car wash.

I doubt that today such an important historical building would be alowed to be demolished as the population is more concerned in these matters as compared to 1954. Thank god that the Maison St Dizier was not destroyed (Old Stone House) wich is the oldest house in Verdun (built 1710). I have added this photo to my album no. 29.

Guy

Please Note: Edward Wilson was the mayor of Verdun in 1954.

 

Former teacher, Alice Bundza Mossey coming to Verdun for a get-together May 9, 2009

I seem to be having a hard time posting this information to the group.  It doesn't seem to appear anywhere.  Now I'm going to try the blog and see what happens.

-----------------------

Received this e-mail from Alice (Bundza) Mossey :

----- Original Message -----
From: Louise Lafontaine (Mary Kay Consultant)
To: Apmossey@aol.com ; BETAL@SYMPATICO.CA ; DIRGNI45@aol.com ; penner26@telus.net ; mlkushog@sympatico.ca
Sent: Thursday, April 02, 2009 5:48 PM
Subject: Date ? Time ? Re: OK = IT'S SPRING !


I'll post it on the Verdun site and see if anyone responds.

Louise Lafontaine

----- Original Message -----
From: Apmossey@aol.com
To: BETAL@SYMPATICO.CA ; DIRGNI45@aol.com ; penner26@telus.net ; l.lafontaine@rogers.com ; mlkushog@sympatico.ca
Sent: Thursday, April 02, 2009 2:21 PM
Subject: OK = IT'S SPRING !


A NOTE TO ALL OF YOU. I WOULD LOVE TO SEE WHOEVER COULD MAKE IT TO LINDA MINICUCCI'S RESTAURANT IN VERDUN ON WELLINGTON NEAR ?= I'LL HAVE TO FIND OUT WHAT THE CROSS STREET IS ???????

HOW ABOUT LETTING ME KNOW WHEN MOST OF YOU COULD MAKE IT - THOSE WHO CAN'T AND I KNOW B.C. IS A LITTLE FAR FOR A REUNION BUT WE COULD USE A LITTLE NOTE WITH A PICTURE AND THAT WOULD BE FUN TO SHARE - MAYBE WITH YOUR KIDS/GRANDKIDS.

I'LL BE WRITING TO A WHEELER I SAW TODAY AND SEE IF I CAN LOCATE ROBERTA WHEELER AND SEE IF SHE CAN MAKE IT - IF YOU KNOW OF ANYONE ELSE WHO MIGHT BE INTERESTED - THE MORE THE MERRIER !

IN CASE YOU'D LIKE TO WRITE A NOTE - MY ADDRESS IS:-
10 Montgomery St. #1
Rouses' Point, NY
12979 - that is, of course, Ms. Alice Mossey - NOT Ms. Bundza.

Hope to hear from some of you and would love to see some of you again.

1972 Verdun High Grads.

Would anyone know  the whereabouts of Bill Campbell,   Peter Strike,  Maurice and Maureen Patterson,  Sharon Robertson.   Just wandering if any body has heard about them.

Dawson community center anniversary

Today I received a schedule of events for the anniversary of Dawson boys club as it was known to me before these all encompassing titles.

 

Check dawson50yranniversary.blogspot.com for more information.

A Really Cool Place

Does anyone remember the Verdun Ice House situated on Beurling near Woodland way before Champlain Blvd existed. Set back in the field this Big Black Barn Like Building stored the ice for Verdun ice boxes before the fridge came along.I must admit I never saw it but my husband told me he would help the iceman deliver the ice to the houses in Verdun.

Maybe Guy would have pictures of this Verdun Landmark? It must have been a very important building in that time. Pauline

PS

Does anyone remember the ICEMAN????

 

 

 

Fish Watching in Lasalle

Who remembers the   aquarium almost at the end of LaSalle Blvd. in Ville LaSalle? They had about 6 to 8 cement pools about 3 feet deep outside and inside there were more pools but I can’t remember how big it was inside. The outside pools from what I can remember were approximately 8ft W x15 ft L   they were loaded and I mean loaded with big Black Fish maybe carp? They must have weighted 30 plus lbs. and about 4feet plus long. I wish I asked questions back then but we were just interested in watching these big fish swim around in their crowed space. We always went on a hot summer night. I guess by the time we came back  the house had cooled down enough to sleep.Does anyone know why they were there and what did the do with all those fish.It must have been very expensive to keep all those fish. Pauline